A Surviving Young Adult's Rants and Raves.

Last May 15-17, 2010 my mom, sister, and I went to Camotes for a Summer trip. She planned everything. All I had to do was split the expenses with her. But I decided to know more about the details in case I have friends who would like to go there as well. And so, I came up with this blog so I can help other people plan a trip there too. In this post you will find information about the islands and the itinerary of our trip.

The Camotes islands are situated in the Northeast Visayas. The islands are divided into 4 municipalities: Poro, Tudela, San Francisco, and Pilar. The main language is Cebuano except in Poro where the people pronounce the “y” sound with a “z” sound. For example, instead of saying “Maayong buntag” they say “Maazong buntag.” The people are very friendly and trust-worthy. Unlike most tourist spots where they rip you off as much as they can, they are very honest and reliable. So if you would like a fresh destination for your next vacation that is very affordable then Camotes should be one of the top 3 on your list.

These are some of the pictures I took when we went there:

This is the picture of their swimming pool.

How to get there:

There are no direct flights to Camotes; however, I heard that that will be happening soon. Anyway, you need to go to Cebu via boat or plane.

Danao port, Cebu – You can go straight to Danao if you are not from Cebu but if you are, there is a V-hire terminal at SM City that will take you to Danao port for 40 pesos/pax. The drivers usually wait for the van to be filled before leaving. So that could be a problem if there are only two or three of you.

Boat ride to Camotes – This is the list of Shipping companies, schedule of trips, and the fare prices: Link We availed of the Jomalia Shipping line and it took exactly 2 hours to get to Consuelo, San Francisco which is only 15 minutes away from Santiago Bay Garden and Resort where we stayed at.

We took a multi-cab ride from Consuelo to Santiago which cost 50 pesos/pax. motorcycles or habal-habals are also available for the same price.

Santiago Bay Garden and Resort – Santiago Bay Garden and Resort is very affordable. The ambiance is nice and the best part is that it’s the partner resort of Mangodlong Rock Resort so you don’t need to pay an entrance fee when you stay there. All you have to do is get a motorcycle ride for 30 pesos/pax. These are the positive and negative feedbacks of Santiago Bay:

Positive:

There is a swimming pool that is situated by the edge of the resort overlooking the beach

This is the picture of their swimming pool.

The rooms are simple but comfortable. They also have villas available.

They have a restaurant, bar, 2 pool tables, and they offer diving courses, banana and jet ski rides.

Their food prices range from 100-200 per order

The use of the pool table is 50 pesos/hr which is quite cheap considering they play music and the tables are good.

Negative:

During our last day there, they ran out of water!

during the middle of the day there is no beach shore. That’s where Mangodlong Rock Resort comes in.

They don’t have internet and cable.

Camotes Island Tour

If you want to tour the island, the resort offers packages but there are also freelance habal-habal drivers that offer tours for 500 pesos/motorcycle and the fuel refill is on you. There are also multicabs available for hire. We took the motorcycles and we went to the following places:

Bukilat Cave

Buho Rock

Timubo cave

Green lake Park

Lake Danao Park

Mangodlong Rock Resort

To be honest, it was well worth our money. We got to take beautiful pictures, swim in the calm, cold waters of Timubo Cave and sun bathe on the beautiful shores of Mangodlong Rock Resort.

If there is one regret I have is that I wasn’t able to try their delicacy which is the fried dry tilapia I heard it’s really good and I wish i knew this before I went there. At least I have the chance to let other people know about it and so they won’t miss this!

I made a video of our trip and it includes some of the pictures we took while we were there: Camotes Trip

So, when you go back to Cebu you have to be at the port early so that you can get a ticket. They usually ask you to form a line and discard the list that you need to write your names on for documentation purposes.

So I hope this helped. Feel free to comment for any questions and I will get back to you as soon as I can.

I’m always looking for a nice place to visit. This looks good. However, I am curious about something that has become very important to me. Several “resorts” I visited in the Philippines had roosters roaming the grounds. They would begin to crow around 4:30 each morning when it was still dark, and crow all day long every day until it was dark again. I grew to hate these little sleep-killers. Filipinos seem to be deaf to roosters, able to sleep soundly through the racket. Does this place have roosters?

No, they don’t have roosters or any animals for that matter. We slept soundly. I for one hate the sound of roosters in the morning. Actually, the resort is a quiet place and they have several nooks within the stone walls below the resort itself where you can sunbathe or just relax and swim.

About 10K but there were four of us. It would definitely cost less if there’s only a few people OR if it’s a large group who would divide the expenses. To be honest, the resort we stayed at had really cheap rates for their rooms. You can even bring your own food and drinks. Actually, I suggest that you bring food & drinks. For more info about the resort you can check their site :)